The Abundant Garden Sample

This is an activity for children of all ages. The anatomy of the bee is intriguing; every part has a well-defined purpose or role. The goal of this activity is for children to stretch their learning about the importance and design of bees.

*(R) - books personally reviewed

Cross-curricular subjects addressed: Science, Oral Composition, Reading Comprehension, Drama, Bible, Art, Handwriting

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• Supplies:
  • gardening notebook/journal
  • paper (if using a binder) - copy paper, cardstock and/or 140 lb weight paper if using watercolors
  • pencil and eraser
  • art medium of choice (colored pencils, watercolors, crayons, or markers)
  • page protectors
  • camera (optional)
  • paper bags and string
  • cornmeal
  • straw
  • colored fabric or a flower crown
  • cup with water
  • magnifying glass
  • memory verse box (optional)
• Subject addressed - Bible: Throughout the week memorize Proverbs 16:24, "Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." Have your older child write out the memory verse onto a notecard to include in a memory verse box.
• Subjects addressed - Reading Comprehension and Science: Read one or more of the recommended books about bees.
• Subject addressed - Oral Composition: Allow your child an opportunity to share any thoughts he/she may have had while listening to the book. Narrate in turns if there are several children. Encouraging your child to share about what they learned with Dad during dinner is a great way to narrate naturally.
• Subject addressed - Drama: Together with your child, act out what's been learned. Go outside and attach paper bags (pollen baskets) to their legs with string. Have your child pretend to be a bee while you pretend to be a flower. Cover your head with brightly colored fabric or a flower crown and hide somewhere outside (preferably in a garden). Once your child finds you, let them sip water (nectar) out of a cup using a straw (their proboscis). As they drink, fill their bags (pollen baskets) with cornmeal. Then have them do a "waggle dance" to share with other bees information about where to find pollen. Have them spread the cornmeal (pollen) as they visit flower after flower. If there is more than one child, consider each taking a different role in the hive (Queen, worker, forager, etc.).
• Subject addressed - Science: Consider visiting a local bee farm in your area. Take pictures of the hives, bees, honeycomb, and any other areas of interest to put on a journal page. Taste the honey if able and take the opportunity to learn as much as you can about bees through this experience.
• Subject addressed - Oral Composition: Ask open ended questions about your visit, encouraging your child to tell you what they learned or about their favorite part of their trip to the bee farm. Talk about the different types of honeybees, what work each bee does, and why their work is so important to us?
• Subject addressed - Science: If unable to visit a bee farm, consider making a bee look out by placing a drop of honey right outside a window. Sit and wait for them to come. Use a magnifying glass to examine them more closely.
• Subjects addressed - Science, Art, and Handwriting: Draw a bee and label each part. If you were not able to visit a bee farm, use one or more of the following resources to draw a bee, honeycomb, or hive:
  • Bees: A Honeyed History by Piotr Socha - highly recommended for children ages 6-12 (please note there is mention of evolution). (R)
  • Nature Anatomy (p. 68-69) by Julia Rothman - highly recommended for children ages 5-11 (please note there is mention of evolution). (R)
  • Farm Anatomy (p. 166-169) by Julia Rothman - highly recommended for children ages 5-11. (R)
  • wedrawanimals.com (http://www.wedrawanimals.com/how-to-draw-a-bee/).
• Subject addressed - Science: Have your child briefly talk or write about the function or role of each part of the bee. Record a younger child's explanations/dictations as needed on the journal page.
• If pictures have been taken, have your child place these pictures on a journal page.
• "Digging Deeper" for an older child: To learn more about bees, have your child draw one or more of the following:
  • the life cycle of a bee
  • a web of life originating from a bee and its honey
  • a bee history timeline (see The Life and Times of the Honeybee by Charles Micucci)
  • a picture of a bee pollinating a flower to better understand the pollination process (consider reading the book Watch Honeybees With Me by Judy Hawes)
• Feel free to add this week's memory verse, a list of the books read, poems, recipes, memories, or quotes about bees to the journal page(s).
• Place the page(s) in a protector when finished and include in the garden notebook/journal.

"The bee is more honored than other animals, not because she labors, but because she labors for others" (St. John Chrysostom).

The Bee

Away in the meadow

Amid the red clover,

The funniest music

Goes over and over:

The honey-bee singing

His song to the clover.

The words, they are set

To the rhythmical tune,

A rumble, and bumble

And zoom!

zoom!

zoom!

Zoom! goes the honey-bee, over and over,

Humming his tune to the blossoming clover.

~Author unknown

The hum of bees is the voice of the garden.

~Elizabeth Lawrence

->Start the week's sixth activity "Become a Bee Guardian"->

Sample Week Table of Contents

Bees

• Bee Lesson
• Bee Literature
• Honey Butter
• Honey Lemon Lollipops
• Beeswax Candles
• You Are So Bee.you.tiful Cards
• Anatomy of a Bee
• Become a Bee Guardian

Next week's lesson "Johnny Appleseed"